Bwana's Nashville through to MLS Cup semis with Toronto win
Winners of the two conferences will duel in the Audi MLS Cup final on December 12.
What you need to know:
- The 23-year-old Kenyan-American forward was an unused substitute as Nashville grabbed the all-important goal through Mexican Daniel Rios in the second half of extra-time.
- Rios came on as a substitute for Venezuelan Jhonder Cadiz in the 71st minute. He scored from point-blank on 108 minutes.
Handwalla Bwana’s Nashville SC kept alive their dream of becoming Audi Major League Soccer (MLS) Cup champions after progressing to the Eastern Conference semi-finals playoffs with a 1-0 win over Toronto FC 1-0 on Tuesday.
The 23-year-old Kenyan-American forward was an unused substitute as Nashville grabbed the all-important goal through Mexican Daniel Rios in the second half of extra-time.
Rios came on as a substitute for Venezuelan Jhonder Cadiz in the 71st minute. He scored from point-blank on 108 minutes.
Bwana has played just over 60 minutes cumulatively since joining Nashville from another MLS side Seattle Sounders on October 21, featuring against FC Dallas, Orlando City and Inter Miami.
In their first-ever meeting in playoffs against Toronto, Nashville had three goals disallowed for offside.
Cadiz scored two goals which were ruled for offside. Nashville have now won their last four matches on the road by outscoring their opponents Houston Dynamo, Victor Wanyama’s Montreal Impact, Orlando City and Toronto 8-3.
The latest victory makes Nashville the first expansion team to reach the semi-final stage of the playoffs since Chicago Fire in 1998.
Nashville’s next stop is in Ohio on November 29 to take on Columbus Crew in the Eastern Conference semi-finals.
Columbus tossed New York Red Bulls out of the title race with 3-2 win on November 21. Winner of Nashville-Columbus Crew encounter will play either New England Revolution or Orlando City in the Eastern Conference final on December 6.
After sweeping aside Thierry Henry’s Montreal Impact in play-in round on November 20, Revolution added Philadelphia Union on the list of casualties on Wednesday. Goals from Adam Buksa and Tajon Buchanan were enough to hand the Revolution a semi-final matchup against Orlando City who floored New York City on post-match penalties 6-5 after normal and extra time finished 1-1.
Seattle Sounders are also through to the last four in Western Conference. They dismissed Los Angeles FC 3-1 on Wednesday morning.
Winners of the two conferences will duel in the Audi MLS Cup final on December 12.
